That pretty much settled it. After class he came home and sat down at his desk. He felt like a first class idiot. He’d spent good money on flashlights and batteries, and all for a stupid expedition that made no sense to anyone but himself. There was no proof that there was anything down there. There was nothing but a map and a box full of junk. Furthermore, she was absolutely right when she said that somebody gave them the box, somebody whose intentions had obviously been for them to follow the map, but who neglected to mention why. In a country where there were something like thirty-five serial killers active at any given time and somewhere someone turned up missing, raped, brutalized or murdered almost hourly, it was far more likely that such a map would lead to a sociopath than to a treasure.
Above all, Albert Cross was a logical-minded person, and he could not deny that, logically, nothing about the box made any sense.
That night, he took the box with all its contents, locked it and then placed it and the key inside the plastic bag with the things he’d bought that morning. He then dropped the entire box into his bottom desk drawer and closed it.
Chapter 5
On the following Monday, Albert arrived at class early, and was sitting at the table when Brandy walked in. She was wearing a small, purple dress, and he was surprised by how great it looked on her. Her slender legs were smooth and sexy, her figure lean, modest, pretty. She dropped her backpack on the table and sat down next to him, her knees neatly together, perfectly ladylike.
“Hello,” she chimed with tired cheerfulness.
“Hi. You look nice today.”
“Thanks.” She smiled at him as she sat down, genuinely pleased by his compliment.
“Special occasion or just wanted to dress nice?”
“Just wanted to.”
“That’s cool. If you know you’re pretty, show it.”
She smiled at him again, this time with a shy sort of embarrassment. He had flattered her. The look made him blush a little.
“You going to be ready for Friday’s test?” she asked, mercifully changing the subject.
“I think so. How about you?”
“Tests always make me nervous, but we’ll see.”
“I’ve always liked tests. Usually means no homework.”
“That’s true.”
“I’m going into the tunnels.”
Brandy looked at him so quickly that she nearly startled him. “What?”
“I’m going. I’ve been thinking about it all weekend.” Obsessing over it was more like it. He hadn’t been able to stop wondering where the box came from and what it meant. He could not get it off his mind. He kept finding himself gazing toward his desk, toward the drawer where it was hidden away. “I have to know what’s down there and I have to know why that stuff was sent to us.”
“Albert, I don’t know.”
“I know. I’m just telling you because this belongs to you too. If you don’t want to come that’s fine, I understand, but I can’t go down there without at least letting you know I’m going. Give you the option.”
“I’m not going.”
“Okay.”
“I really don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“I know.”
“It’s not safe.”
“I’m going tonight. If you don’t see me again, you’ll know that for sure.”
“Don’t say that. It’s scary.”
“I’m sorry.”
She shook her head. “Crazy.”
“I know.”
She began to remove her books from her backpack. “I mean I want to know what’s down there too, but Jesus.”
“I’ll let you know tomorrow.”
Brandy laughed. It was a short bark of a laugh, the sort of laugh that was akin to rolling ones eyes. “What is it with boys and adventures?”
“Too many cartoons.”
Again she laughed, this time more freely. “Yeah. I think so.”
“If you decide you want to come along, that’s fine. I’ve got two flashlights. Otherwise, I’m fine solo too.”
Brandy looked at him without speaking. Something stirred in her eyes, something he did not quite understand, but thought was a struggle. A part of her wanted to go, he could tell, she wasn’t really trying very hard to talk him out of it, after all, but it was only a small part of her. He hadn’t expected her to go, and why should she? Look at her. She was a beautiful young woman. He did not very well picture her crawling through dirty tunnels.
“No pressure,” he promised.
She said nothing more about the matter, and when class was over, she quickly gathered her things and left ahead of him.
Albert was disappointed. It would have been nice to have her along. It would have been sort of like a date, although a terribly unromantic one. He stuffed his books into his backpack, taking his time, and started home.
He’d done his best to invite Brandy on this adventure. He’d wanted her company, to spend some time alone with her. He had hoped that they would be able to get to know each other a little better. But it was also the right thing to do. He felt that whatever was down there belonged as much to her as to him, and he would not have wanted her to set off into the tunnels without him. And if she was right about the dangers, then at least someone would know where he’d gone if he didn’t make it back.
Besides, he’d already known that she would likely refuse the offer. He’d already resigned himself to proceeding without her. This was why it came as such a surprise when he found Brandy waiting for him outside the main doors, a cigarette in one hand, the other clinging to the strap of her bag. Her hair whipped across her face in the breeze and she squinted against the bright sunlight. She didn’t look at him, but rather out at the sprawling campus around them.
“I just know I’m going to regret this,” she said.
Chapter 6
They met on the back steps of Juggers Hall. Some research had revealed to Albert that this was the business building up until the construction of the new Craw Building a few years earlier. Now it was the music building.
Albert arrived first, dressed in blue jeans and a long sleeve shirt and wearing his bulky, green backpack. It was a little chilly, but he chose to leave his jacket at home. He counted on being out of the wind and doing a lot of walking. Brandy arrived shortly after, dressed in jeans, tennis shoes and a dark blue sweatshirt. Her purse was slung over one shoulder. It wasn’t as sexy as the dress she’d been wearing that afternoon, but she was no less lovely.
Albert had told her to meet him here at midnight. From here they would slip into the service tunnel by way of the entrance he’d found. Even on a Monday night, there would be people out at all hours on a university campus, but he counted on the traffic being light by midnight. It would have been safer to wait until after two or three, but then they ran some risk of surfacing in the morning when traffic on the sidewalk would be terrible. The university would not take well to students walking around in their steam tunnels. It was likely a major violation.
The area was deserted. Two girls passed by just after Albert first arrived, but he’d seen no one since. There was no traffic to worry about. There were no roads within sight and from here all the buildings stood with their backs to them. No lights shined in any windows, the custodians either at work elsewhere in the buildings or, more likely, finished for the night. Luck was with them.
“Well,” announced Brandy, not sure what to say. “I’m here.”
“Yes you are.” Albert was looking around, checking again for anyone who might have crept near enough to see them, but the area was still deserted. It was almost eerie in its still silence. During the day this area bustled with foot traffic almost continuously.
“So now what?”
“Now we go down.” He descended the steps and crossed the wide sidewalk to the tunnel entrance. He looked around one last time and then knelt and pulled at the cover. It was heavy as hell, more so than he expected. For a moment he thought it was going to prove too heavy for him to open, and the thought was maddening. If he couldn’t move this cover, then what could they possibly do? It was the only way in that he knew about, and even if he did find another entrance, he was certain the map started right here. He hadn’t been able to find any information at all about these tunnels online, much less a map.